Need is outdated, but spot is still restricted

By Christina Pazzanese, Globe Correspondent  |  October 5, 2008

If you have a car and live in Boston, you know that finding a parking space on city streets is never easy. It's especially difficult in Charlestown, where roadways are narrow, and driveways and parking garages are practically nonexistent.

Tipster Ellen Flipse tells GlobeWatch she'd like to know what happens when a valuable parking space on a street near her home goes largely unused because outdated street signs restrict who can park there.

"There was a family living on the adjacent street that needed a handicapped parking space; however, the family moved away a few months ago," writes Flipse. "Now the space is never utilized. (There is another handicapped space located only a few feet away.) Is there a way for the area to be reevaluated to see if there is a need for this second handicapped parking space? Parking is so limited . . . to see a parking space like this always empty is frustrating," she writes.

A Globe reporter visited Trenton Street last week and found two handicapped-only spaces in front of two buildings next door to each other. Both were occupied, though only one car appeared to have the requisite placard or vehicle plate to park there legally.

"It is the responsibility of each resident that is issued a placard by the Commission for Persons with Disabilities to alert the Commission when they move or no longer need the placard. In certain cases, such as death, the next of kin is responsible for notifying the commission," said Stephen Spinetto, who heads the commission, in an e-mail response. The panel oversees the assignment and management of handicapped parking access.

The Boston Transportation Department installs and removes the street signs under the commission's direction, said Christopher Loh, a spokesman for Mayor Thomas M. Menino's office.

"At times, people fail to notify the commission," said Spinetto. "Often the commission is notified of the lack of use of a handicapped sign by alert community members at which point an investigation takes place. When the investigation reveals the sign is no longer in use, the city takes the sign down. This process takes about two weeks.

"There are certain instances where signs go without use and are not taken down until they expire. Each sign has an expiration date of two years. When signs expire, a renewal form is sent to the sign holder. If the form is not returned by a certain date the city takes the sign down.

"The commission has full authority to take misused signs down and can report placard and license plate abuse to the Registry of Motor Vehicles that can issue fines and license suspensions."

Stephen Spinetto
Commissioner
Commission for Persons with Disabilities
1 City Hall Plaza, Room 966
Boston, MA 02201-2041
617-635-2500